This Can't Be Love

by Maria Geraci

  Brad Connors came up to hand his wife a plate of food and the women all took off for the auction tables, leaving the two men alone. He and Luke shook hands. “Powers. Long time no see.”

  “I hear you’re the guy we used to be afraid of back in high school,” Luke joked.

  “Yep. Principal of Academics and ass-kicking,” Brad said.

  They laughed, then Brad sobered, taking a few seconds to check out Luke’s tux. “Sorry about the suit. Stacey called your mom last night and thought it would be a good idea. And it looks like she was right. Did you know that you’re up to thirteen hundred bucks now? We should have brought you in when we were raising money for the gym roof.”

  Luke was about to correct him and tell him it was twelve hundred, not thirteen, but at this point the whole thing was so ridiculous it didn’t matter. “Does the gym really need a new roof?” he asked, ready to pull out his checkbook. What was the point of having money if you couldn’t put it to good use?

  “Booster donations took care of that. Don’t you remember? You donated a pretty penny yourself.” At the look on Luke’s face, Brad smiled grimly. “Do we have your secretary or some administrative assistant to thank for that?”

  “My assistant, Lori.”

  Brad punched his fist through the air. “Thank you, Lori!”

  Both men laughed again. “Seriously, though,” Luke said, “Is there anything I can do to help? Any more roofs need fixing?”

  Brad looked thoughtful. “Actually, there is something you could do. We’re having a college and career night this Wednesday for the upcoming high school seniors and their parents. I have a bunch of alumni scheduled to come and talk about their jobs. Mimi and Zeke will be there and Pilar Diaz-Rothman, so we have politics and the law covered. Nate Miller is talking about being a doctor, but we don’t have any engineers. What do you say?”

  “Sure,” Luke said. “I’d enjoy going back to the old high school.”

  Brad gave him his business card with the details written on the back. “See you then, stud.” He winked at him before going off to catch up with his wife.

  Luke squelched the urge to give Brad the finger, in a playful way, of course, but he didn’t want anyone around to misinterpret the gesture. Speaking of laughing at oneself, he couldn’t laugh at twelve hundred bucks. He walked over to the bid tables to ascertain the identity of the idiot planning to spend that much money on a date with him when he spotted Sarah bent over reading the details of his bidding sheet.

  He’d only seen her in a dress once before, the night she’d come to his family’s house for dinner, and she’d looked nice enough. Tonight, she wore the requisite black dress that most of the women in the room sported, only most of the women in the room hadn’t been gifted with that tight little body of hers. Her long, blond hair fell down her back in soft waves and her legs… Damn. If it was up to him, she’d never wear anything but heels again.

  He hadn’t seen much of her since the night of their kiss. The next day she’d spent some time with Cameron and Toby and had even played the promised game of Monopoly, but other than that, she was hardly ever home. She leaned over the paper as if studying it, causing the dress to hug her ass.

  He was instantly both turned on and irritated as hell.

  “Are you bidding on me?”

  She spun around, her green eyes rounded in surprise. “As if.” Then she gave him a thorough look-over. “Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t afford you, but I have to admit, you sure do look pretty tonight.”

  “So do you,” he said without thinking.

  His compliment took her off guard. “Um, thanks. How’s it going?”

  “I hear I’m up to twelve hundred bucks, maybe even thirteen if you believe the rumors. I had no idea there was an insane asylum escapee living in Whispering Bay.”

  She laughed and he caught the subtle scent of vanilla in the air. He instinctively stepped closer. She cleared her throat and turned away to look at the bidding sheet again. “It looks like the crazy woman is someone named Juliet.”

  “I don’t know any Juliets. Do you?”

  “No, but I’m pretty sure that’s a fake name.”

  “Great. I just hope whoever she is, she isn’t into role playing because I have no intention of being her Romeo.”

  She laughed again and his gaze automatically went to her mouth. Her lips were moist and pink. Lipstick? Or natural? He had a sudden urge to kiss her again and find out.

  He drained his punch and followed her as she walked around the tables, looking at the other silent auction items. There was a week’s vacation at a beach house in Key West and a year’s worth of lawn work by a local nursery that were getting a lot of bids, but the “Win a Date with Luke Powers” entry was currently bringing in the most money.

  “I’m up to a hundred bucks,” she declared proudly, pointing to her own bidding sheet.

  He grabbed a pen and scribbled in a number. “A hundred and twenty. If they want one of your homemade meals bad enough they’ll cough up the dough.”

  “What if you end up winning?”

  “Then you can cook me dinner.” He glanced around the crowded room. “Speaking of which, have you eaten yet?”

  “Not really,” she said.

  “Let’s grab some food and a table.”

  “You want to eat together?”

  “Why not? Unless you’re trying to avoid me.”

  Which could very well be the reason he hadn’t seen much of her since last weekend. Maybe he was playing with fire here. As much as he’d wanted to forget their kiss, he hadn’t been able to, but there couldn’t be any harm in a little flirtation over dinner. They were both adults. They could rein it back in anytime.

  “Of course I’m not trying to avoid you.” She made a flourishing motion with her hand. “Lead the way, sir.”

  They loaded up their plates with food, but the only spot left to sit at was a table where his family and some of the Gray Flamingos were already seated.

  “Sarah! I’m so glad you could come tonight,” Mimi said, grabbing Sarah by the hand. She pulled her into the only empty seat on that end of the table. “We need to catch up.” Sarah and his sister then began an animated discussion involving The Bistro and local politics.

  So much for a little harmless flirtation.

  Luke found a seat between his mother and Viola Pantini. “Are you enjoying your big night?” Viola asked.

  If this was his big night then someone please kill him now. He smiled politely. “As a matter of fact, I am.” Because to say anything else would be rude, and he genuinely liked Viola.

  “I wish my niece Jenna could have been here tonight. She was planning to come, of course, but she’s still packing up her apartment in Clearwater. She started her new job as city manager last week and she’s just been so busy.”

  “I’m sure she’ll do a great job,” Luke said sincerely.

  Viola and his mother exchanged a look that made Luke uneasy. What was it that Mimi had said? That Jenna Pantini was his mother’s new hope for him? Victoria 2.0, she’d called her. It didn’t take a degree in rocket science to figure out what they were up to. He wondered if Jenna was in on it or if she was as much a dupe as he was. The couple of times he’d run into her, all he’d ever picked up was a friendly but definitely not interested vibe. It was best to nix this whole matchmaking scheme before it went any further.

  “I had some good news the other day,” Luke announced. “It looks like my firm has a good chance to win a contract in Alaska.”

  The entire table turned to look at him.

  “Alaska?” Mimi said. “Didn’t you just come from there?”

  “No, I’ve been in Louisiana for the past couple of months. I’ve never done a job in Alaska. If it pans out, we might even open up an office on the west coast.”

  His mother let out a large sigh. “Surely, you won’t have to go though, will you? Can’t you hire more engineers to do that?”

  “Yes, but if we get this contract then they’ll ex
pect either Ethan or myself to head up the team. Besides, working in Alaska has always been a dream of mine.”

  No one said anything for a second.

  “I think that sounds fabulous,” Sarah said. “Alaska is so beautiful. At least, from what I’ve seen in pictures and on TV.”

  Viola shivered dramatically. “But it’s so cold!”

  “And so far away,” his mother added, giving Viola another pointed look.

  “I wouldn’t be moving there,” he said. “Just doing an assignment for a few months.”

  This was met with more silence. Then the sound of someone tapping a mic caught their attention. Luke turned in his seat to see Stacey up on the stage, holding a microphone in her hand.

  “On behalf of the Sunny Days’ Preschool Program, we want to thank all of you for coming out tonight!” The crowd applauded. “And a special thanks goes to the Bunco Babes and their spouses for donating all the decorations!” This was met by more applause and whistles from his sister and a nearby table where a large majority of her Bunco friends were sitting. Luke recognized the usual suspects—Kitty and Steve Pappas and Pilar and her husband, as well as a handful of others.

  Stacey waited for the applause to die down. “The silent auction is going fabulously and the good news is that there’s still time to put in your bids. Bidding will stop at exactly eleven pm, so don’t get left behind! Desserts, provided by The Bistro by the Beach, will be served shortly and I have a special surprise for y’all! Harry Tuba and his Polka Band have agreed to play for us. So, don’t be shy! Let the dancing begin!”

  The lights dimmed and a polka tune, not that Luke would have recognized the song’s title, filled the air. Almost immediately a table full of the Gray Flamingos got up and began to fill the small dance floor.

  “Oh, no. Not Harry Tuba,” Mimi moaned.

  Zeke stood and offered her his arm. “C’mon, let bygones be bygones.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Okay, but I’m not going to enjoy it.”

  “Oh, yes, you are,” Zeke promised, causing Mimi to laugh.

  Viola leaned over to whisper in his ear. “Your sister and Harry Tuba have a bit of a history.”

  Before Luke could ask what that meant, a bony finger tapped him on the shoulder. “I might not be able to outbid this Juliet person, but this dance is all mine.” Betty Jean Collins stood before him, decked out in a long, silver, sparkly dress that seemed too dressy for the occasion, but what the hell, he was wearing a tuxedo, so they practically matched.

  “I thought you’d never ask,” he said.

  She giggled, then grabbed him by the hand and led him onto the dance floor.

  He’d never polka danced in his life, but he caught on fast, and soon he was dancing with nearly every senior citizen in town, including some of the men. He’d skied in Austria, snorkeled off the San Blas islands in Panama, and skydived out of airplanes. And now here he was, wearing a tuxedo and polka dancing with a woman old enough to be his grandmother. Or was his partner the old guy with the fedora hat? He couldn’t tell right now.

  Luke laughed. It was crazy, but it wasn’t the worst time he’d ever had.

  The band announced a break and he excused himself from his current partner.

  “If I didn’t suspect you’re the world’s best actor, I’d actually believe you were having fun out there,” Sarah said.

  “Believe it or not, I am having fun,” he admitted.

  She cocked her head to the side as if to figure out if he was lying or not. She must have decided he was telling the truth because she smiled approvingly. “Good. Those ladies have been talking non-stop all week about the chance to dance with you tonight. I’m glad you weren’t just pretending to have a good time with them.”

  “What about you? Are you having a good time?” He hadn’t noticed her out on the dance floor.

  She nodded, smiling brightly. “My homemade dinner is up to two hundred dollars.”

  “I’m almost afraid to ask.”

  “You’re up to two grand,” she said.

  He flinched. “This is ridiculous. I’m going to put a stop to this right now.”

  “Don’t you dare. Whoever this Juliet is, she can obviously afford it and the money is going to a great cause.”

  “And we’re back!” Harry Tuba announced. “We’ve decided to change it up and channel some Sinatra for the lovebirds in the house.”

  The Way You Look Tonight, polka-style, began to play and the room went crazy.

  He shouldn’t do it. But he couldn’t help himself. “I’ll let the auction continue on one condition,” he said. “Dance with me.”

  She glanced back at the band, then up at him. Without waiting for her response, he placed his hand over hers and led her to the dance floor. The song was a little bouncier than normal, but it was still recognizable. He wrapped an arm around her waist and drew her close.

  “I never said yes,” she said. He moved to let go of her, but then she put her arms around his neck and sighed. “But since it’s for a good cause, I suppose one dance won’t hurt.” She smiled up at him and his chest tightened. Even wearing heels, the top of her head only came up to his chin, and the urge to tuck her head against his chest—

  He spun her around and she laughed, startled.

  “What? Did you think I was too old to do that? I’ll have you know that even at my advanced age I still have some moves left.”

  “I bet you do,” she muttered. Then she closed her eyes for a second and took a deep breath. When she looked back up at him, her green eyes were clear and direct. “I know we weren’t going to talk about the kiss, because, I mean, what’s to say, really? Except I’m glad we’re getting past it. I know we got off to a rocky start, but there’s no reason we can’t be friends, right?”

  “Sure. I’d like that.” But it was a lie, because it was high time he admitted to himself that he didn’t just want to be her friend.

  He was careful not to hold her too closely for the rest of the dance, but the perfume he’d noticed earlier filled his nostrils. Her breasts pressed against him, and despite what they’d just said, he found himself wondering what she would do if he kissed her again. Right here. Right now. Years of experience told him that she’d kiss him back, but then what?

  The song ended and another rowdy polka tune slammed through the air. Reluctantly, he let her go. “Thank you,” he said.

  She visibly swallowed. “For what?”

  “For the dance, of course.”

  “I should go check the dessert table and make sure there’s enough.” Before he could say anything else, she scurried off.

  He didn’t see Sarah again for the rest of the evening until the auction results were announced. Stacey came up to the mic and began calling out the winners. Nate Miller and his very pregnant wife, Lauren, won Sarah’s homemade dinner. Lauren, who looked ready to pop out a kid right there on the floor, squealed and hugged Sarah. “Yes!” she said, pumping a fist in the air, much to the crowd’s delight.

  Stacey and Brad won the year’s lawn care service and someone Luke didn’t know won the Key West vacation. Finally, they got down to the last item.

  “And now, the moment we’ve all been waiting for,” Stacey said dramatically. “Win a date with Whispering Bay’s most eligible bachelor, Luke Powers!” The crowd began to clap and cheer. Zeke put his fingers in his mouth and let out a wolf whistle.

  Stacey motioned for Luke to come up to the mic. He made his way up to the stage and tried not to look as ridiculous as he felt. “And the winner, with a bid of two thousand and five hundred dollars,” Stacey announced, dragging out the moment as long as she could, “is…Juliet!”

  A chorus of disappointed boos hummed through the room. A squeal, no, make that two squeals followed by polite clapping soon overcame the boos. “Juliet, will you please come up to the mic?” Stacey asked.

  The room hushed and a couple hundred pairs of eyes looked on as his mother and Viola came up to the stage. “How sweet! Your own mother bid on you!” S
tacey said, making the crowd laugh.

  What in God’s name were his mother and Viola up to? He put on his best game face. “I would have taken them both out for free,” he said into the mic, causing the crowd to laugh even more.

  His mother took the mic from Stacey’s hand. “Don’t be silly. This date isn’t for me. Viola and I bid on you for someone who’s very excited to be going out with you!” She handed the mic over to Viola.

  “As many of you know, my niece Jenna is now Whispering Bay’s new city manager. And very single.” She turned to Luke. “When she discovered she had to miss the silent auction she was devastated, so your mother and I decided to bid on you for her! Isn’t that exciting?”

  “Wonderful!” Stacey cried. “And how utterly romantic!”

  Then Stacey announced how much money had been raised by the event and everyone clapped even louder. “This has been such a great night, I think we’ll do this again next year!” she said.

  The band played one last tune, and then the overhead lights flooded the room, causing everyone to shield their eyes from the sudden brightness.

  The show was now officially over.

  “Well, that’s not too bad,” Zeke said, coming up to slap him on the back. “Mimi says Jenna is a nice girl. Cute, too.”

  “It could be worse,” Luke agreed.

  “Yeah. Betty Jean could have won you.”

  Luke laughed, then rolled his neck to the side to loosen a crick. A night on display as Whispering Bay’s most eligible poodle had worn him out. Time to get out of this suit. He kissed his mother goodbye and promised to come over for dinner on Sunday.

  People began gathering their things and soon the parish hall was nearly empty. He spotted Sarah putting away the few desserts still left into a large plastic container.

  “Need some help?” he asked.

  “I’ve got it, thanks.” It was a dismissal if ever he heard one, but as much as he wanted this night to be over, he wasn’t ready to see her go yet. They lived in the same house, but if the pattern repeated itself, she’d be holed up in her little room and he wouldn’t see her till the next day. If he was lucky.